How to Restrict Contacts on an iPhone: Screen Time & More

PDF download Download Article
Use Apple’s parental controls to limit communication on iPhone
PDF download Download Article

Do you want to restrict who can communicate with you or your child on an iPhone? There are a few different ways to do this, from setting communication limits during scheduled downtime to blocking individual contacts altogether. Read on to learn all the best ways to limit or restrict contacts on your iPhone.

How to Restrict Contacts on an iPhone

Limit who you or your child can communicate with during allowed screen time or downtime from Settings > Screen Time > Communication Limits . You can also set restrictions on when communication apps are available using the App Limits option in Screen Time. Block contacts from within communication apps or in Settings.

Method 1
Method 1 of 4:

Setting Communication Limits

PDF download Download Article
  1. 1
    OpenSettings on your iPhone. You can set up restrictions on communications during downtime or allowed screen time using iPhone’s Screen Time settings. This feature is available for your own iPhone, or for your child’s iPhone if you have a family group set up. To get started, open your iPhone’s Settings app.
    • Communication to and from emergency numbers recognized by your cellular carrier are always allowed, even when you have restrictions turned on.
    • Need to add a child’s phone to your family group?
      • Go to Settings and tap your name at the top, then tap Family .
      • Tap Continue (if you’ve never set up Family Sharing), then Create Child Account . If you’ve already set up Family Sharing, tap the blue person icon with a + on it in the top right corner, then tap Create Child Account .
      • Fill out the child's first name, last name, and birthday, then tap Create Child Account . Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the process. [1]
      • Make sure you log in with the child’s account on their personal iPhone. You can also create a child account for them when you initially set up their phone, then add them to your family group by going to Settings > Connect to Family on their phone.
  2. 2
    Tap Screen Time . You may need to scroll down to find it.
    • If you’ve never enabled Screen Time, you’ll need to do so before you can continue. Tap App & Website Activity , then tap Turn On App & Website Activity . You can also tap Lock Screen Time Settings in the main Screen Time menu to set up a passcode for Screen Time. [2]
    • If you’re enabling Screen Time for a child’s iPhone, tap their name under Family in the Screen Time menu, then follow the prompts to set up Screen Time for their account.
    Advertisement
  3. 3
    Tap Communication Limits . This is under the COMMUNICATION header in the main Screen Time menu.
  4. 4
    Select During Screen Time to limit who you can contact during screen time. This setting affects who you (or your child) can communicate with during allowed screen time. These restrictions only apply to Apple communication apps, like Phone, FaceTime, Messages, and iCloud. By default, it’s set to Everyone . You have the option to restrict it to Contacts Only or Contacts & Groups with at Least One Contact .
  5. 5
    Select During Downtime to limit communications during scheduled downtime. This option sets limits on who you (or your child) can communicate with while your iPhone is in Downtime mode . Again, this only affects Apple communication apps, like Phone, FaceTime, Messages, and iCloud. It’s set to Everyone by default, but you can limit it to Specific Contacts .
    • You must choose at least one allowed contact if you select Specific Contacts , but that contact can be yourself.
      • To add more, tap Add Contacts under the ALLOWED CONTACTS header. Choose from your current contacts or add a new one.
      • To remove a contact, tap their name under ALLOWED CONTACTS , then scroll down and tap Remove as Downtime Contact .
  6. 6
    Turn on Communication Safety to block inappropriate content in messages. This option doesn’t restrict who you or your child can communicate with, but it sets limits on what types of content can be sent or viewed on your/your child’s iPhone. The Communication Safety feature automatically detects and blocks nude photos and videos in text messages. To turn it on, go to Settings > Screen Time > Communication Safety and toggle on the switch next to Communication Safety .
    7. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 4:

Enabling Limits on Messaging Apps

PDF download Download Article
  1. 1
    OpenSettings. You can also use Screen Time to set limits on when you or your child can use communication apps. This won’t block access to those apps all the time, but you can restrict allowed time to as little as 1 minute per day! To get started, open your iPhone’s Settings app.
    • One advantage of this approach is that you can use it to set limits on non-Apple communication apps, like Facebook’s Messenger app or WhatsApp.
  2. 2
    Tap Screen Time . You may need to scroll down to see it.
    • If you’ve never set up Screen Time before, you’ll need to do so now.
    • If you have a passcode set for Screen Time, you may be prompted to enter it before you set or change your app limits.
  3. 3
    Tap App Limits . It’s under the LIMIT USAGE header.
  4. 4
    Select Add Limit . A new screen will open.
  5. 5
    Select Social . Most apps that allow communication are under this header, including your iPhone’s built-in FaceTime and Messages apps. Tap the arrow to the right of the Social category to open a drop-down menu listing all the apps in that category, or tap the radio button to the left to select all Social apps.
  6. 6
    Select the apps you want to restrict. Tap on as many apps as you like. A checkmark will appear in the circle next to each app name as you select it. When you’re done, tap Next at the top of the screen.
  7. 7
    Set your desired limits and tap Add . Use the scroll to select the number of hours and minutes you want the app(s) to be available each day. For example, if you select 1 hour, 0 min, the app can only be used for 1 hour per day. After that, it will be locked unless you override the limit.
    • Tap Customize Days under the time scroll to set different limits on different days of the week.
    • Setting a Screen Time passcode will prevent anyone who doesn’t know the passcode from overriding the limit. To set a passcode, tap Lock Screen Time Settings in the main Screen Time menu.
    8. Advertisement
Method 3
Method 3 of 4:

Blocking Contacts

PDF download Download Article
  1. 1
    Block contacts in your Phone, Messages, Facetime, or Mail apps. If you want to prevent a specific person from contacting you, there are a few different ways to do it. One of the easiest options is to block them directly from one of your built-in communication apps. [3]
    • Phone: Open the Phone app and tap Recents at the bottom. Tapnext to the call log for the caller you want to block. Scroll down and tap Block Caller .
      • You can also tap the Contacts tab, select a contact, then tap Block Caller at the bottom of their contact card.
    • Messages: In the Messages app, open the conversation with the person you want to block. Tap the icon for the contact at the top of the screen, then tap info . Tap Block Caller at the bottom of their info card.
    • FaceTime: In the FaceTime app, tapnext to a call log from the person you want to block. Tap Block Caller on their contact card.
    • Mail: Open an email message from someone you want to block in the Mail app. Tap their contact name at the top of the message, in the From field. Tap Block this Contact .
  2. 2
    Block contacts in Settings. Another option is to block contacts in Settings. This will only work if the person is saved in your iPhone’s contacts . Here’s how to do it:
    • To block a phone number that’s in your contacts, go to Settings > Apps > Phone . Scroll down and select Blocked Contacts . At the bottom of the list of blocked numbers, tap Add New . Select the contact from your contacts list.
    • To block an email address from your contacts, go to Settings > Apps > Mail . Scroll down and tap Blocked (it’s under the THREADING header). At the bottom of the list, tap Add New . Select the contact from your contacts list.
    3. Advertisement
Method 4
Method 4 of 4:

Tips

PDF download Download Article
  1. 1
    • If you want to create exceptions to your communication restrictions, go to Settings > Screen Time > Always Allowed . Tap Contacts to select which contacts are always allowed, even when you have downtime on or app limits in place.
    • To prevent new apps from accessing or making changes to your contacts, go to Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Contacts and select Don’t Allow Changes. This won’t affect whether people using your phone or your child’s phone can add or delete contacts.

Expert Q&A

Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Tips

      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Name
      Please provide your name and last initial
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

      Warnings

      • Turning off App & Website Activity in Screen Time will deactivate any contact restrictions you set up.
        Thanks
        Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
      Advertisement

      You Might Also Like

      How to
      Get Past the Activation Lock on an iPhone or iPad without the Seller
      10 Simple Ways to Fix an iPhone or Android That Won’t Send Pictures
      How to
      Bypass Your Screen Time Passcode: Reset, Remove, or Hack Screen Time
      2 Ways to Factory Reset iPhone Without Apple ID Password
      How to
      Automatically Forward Text Messages to Another Phone
      4 Ways to Find Your Lost iPhone When It’s Offline or Dead
      How to
      Hard Reset an iPhone
      Malware on iPhone: Signs of Infection & How to Get Rid of It
      How to
      Fix the “iPhone Unavailable” Message: Explanation and Fixes
      8 Easy Fixes for iPhone Messages that Won't Finish Indexing
      How to
      Fix "Notifications Silenced" on iPhone Messages
      Apple ID Sign Out Unavailable? Here's How to Fix It
      Turn Off Location Sharing on an iPhone Without Anyone Knowing
      How to
      Enable MMS on iPhone + Easy Fixes & Alternatives
      Advertisement

      References

      1. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/102617
      2. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/108806
      3. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/111104

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Open Settings .
      2. Tap General .
      3. Tap Restrictions .
      4. Tap Enable Restrictions .
      5. Input a passcode.
      6. Re-input the passcode.
      7. Tap Contacts .
      8. Tap Don’t Allow Changes .

      Did this summary help you?
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 61,926 times.

      Is this article up to date?

      Advertisement